Upwind or Down wind?

SGD

New member
When I call coyotes should I face up wind or down wind. I have a Sceery howler that came with a VHS tape and he says to face downwind, but I have heard other people say different. What do most of you guys do. Thanks.
 
SGR,

Typically I face up-wind and if with a partner which is pretty much all the time, one of us will face down wind also, best of both worlds. Typically I place myself in stands that prohibit a rear entry without having to come around in front of me, whether it is up wind or down wind that I am facing, i.e. Cliffs, Large Hills, or just flat NON coyote country.

The more I learn about coyotes and the more videos I watch, it seems nobody agrees with the proper direction. I grew up in wyoming where wind is almost constant and I have always faced into the wind unless I have no other choice but to face down wind. With coyotes, they will come in any direction they please. Typically the ones I call in come from upwind and try to work down wind, now if I didnt see them, they would come from downwind, I just haven't shot any from down wind and I believe it is because of the areas I hunt, open and visible.

I know, no hard recommendation, but just wait to see your responces here. I think the best idea is, base it on stand by stand situations.

If you hunt with a rifle, facing down wind is feasible, with a shotgun I am not so sure, they have incredible noses and getting them in range may be harder. In brush country I think facing down wind is a good choice, they do love to circle down wind and in brush country I am guessing they are more like to have come from any direction but end up down wind right in front of your face, or behind your back which ever the case may be.

Goodluck with this one,

Coplexic
 
I always call with the wind directly in my face or in my face at an angle, therefore, I set up facing the area I expect to see predators. I pass up a lot of prime spots if the wind is not out of the right direction.

Just my opinion, but I don't think you'll see very many predators if you face downwind and call.
 
You'll get lots of varied opinions on this question. Maybe coyotes in Sceery's part of the country don't have good noses or maybe Ed smells good to them? Personally, I try to call into the wind or slightly cross wind. My experience with calling with the wind has not been real good, although I have called with the wind and bagged coyotes. That said, they were coyotes on the run away from me because they had caught my scent. In the areas I have called in North Dakota and Montana if a coyote catches your scent from as far away as 500 yards or more, they will put on the brakes and skedaddle on into the next county giving you no shot.

What I try to do is set up so that the person calling is looking into the wind and the person riding shotgun guards the down wind side. If you are alone, try to set up so if a coyote does start coming in and then decides to circle behind you to get the wind, you can cut him off before he catches your scent.
 
Setting up cross wind is the best, offering you peripheral view both up and down wind of your stand, as well as the big middle directly cross wind. You will shoot many coyotes coming from up wind and cross wind.....but remember they are all headed to the down wind, always good to have a view of the back door.
 
Since I hunt in the wide open I don't pay any attention to the wind.

If I'm in the brush and calling them close. Then I call up wind or cross wind.

I don't believe a coyote can smell you much closer than 200 yards. If their coming in down wind I let them come till they get to that range then stop them and shoot.

If their circling and going to get down wind I stop them and shoot before they get a wiff of me.
 
SGD
Downwind sucks! If coyotes paid $1,000 and your partner wouldn't share, I believe every experiemced hunter in a two person calling team would always choose up or across wind. Not only does the downwind hunter shoot 1 for every 5-10 the upwind hunter does, he doesn't even get the fun of watching the others approach. Downwind coyotes scent you from 200-500yards (depending on wind) and they will also bolt if they hit your scent trail from when you approached the stand. Downwind hunting is exciting when you do see a coyote because you have to stop him now or never, but it still sucks.
 
SGD: a couple of other factors are terrain/vegetation, and the age/experience of the coyote coming to you.

there could be times when the terrain and vegetation more or less force you to face one way or another; make a judgment call at each of your setups about looking up, across, or downwind.

earlier in the year when the responders in my neck of the woods tend to be juveniles, i find they can come from any direction, including right straight downwind without even a hint of circling to catch scent. in fact, they can behave in some mighty screwball ways, like kids. . . . . . . . . . . . but a winter-time savvy mature adult can be very cautious and crafty. one might sit waaaay back and look and think about it for a while. or maybe slowly come in but always staying hidden in brush, never showing himself. and, i think the mature ones are highly likely to circle downwind for scent. they have been around long enough to be confident about being able to get enough food, and they might not be too inclined to get into a fight with a howling coyote that could be tougher than they are. they perhaps want to see what they are getting into, before committing.

if you do some calling in snow, after you decide to quit a setup, wander around downwind and look for fresh tracks where one circled, smelled ya, and left. and then backtrack him to observe where he came from and how he got to where he smelled you.

you can learn a lot by paying attention to what the signs on the ground are telling you.

best wishes to you, SGD, for a 2003 filled with intereting coyote hunting experiences.
 


Write your reply...
Back
Top